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DIY Wood Curtain Rods with Leather Straps for Under $10

$10 DIY Wood and Leather Curtain Rods (1)

These DIY curtain rods play perfectly with my organic modern style with the use of wood and leather. Plus, they come at an unbeatable price!

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When designing our dining room, I knew I wanted floor-to-ceiling curtains to make the space feel a bit grander. I ordered these light filtering linen curtains in 108′ to carry our 9ft ceilings (shop my favorite linen curtains here!). However, I still had to find curtain rods to hold them. I initially purchased some wood-look curtain rods, but they didn’t look quite right in our home. I am always amazed that something as simple as a curtain rod can cost so much!

Instead of buying more, I began brainstorming ideas to make my own curtain rods that fit my style and budget. Set on the idea of wood curtain rods and wanting to also incorporate leather into the dining room, I thought up this simple design. It seemed easy enough, so I went for it!

Since then, I’ve added these same DIY curtain rods to our master bedroom as well. I changed a few things the second time around, so those tips are included in this post.

DIY Leather Curtain Rods with Leather Straps-01-2

DIY Curtain Rods for Under $10

Supplies Needed:

*For the dowels, I used 1¼ inch in the dining room and 1 inch in our bedroom. I would recommend 1” down to ½” to make sure your curtains slide easily.

Tools Needed:

  • Drill or screwdriver
  • Scissors

Since everyone asks about my curtains – My favorite linen blend curtains from Amazon | My previous favorite curtains from Target

How to Make Curtain Rods for Under $10

Steps to Make Wood and Leather Curtain Rods:

1. Cut the Dowels to Length

For our dining room, I bought a 96″ dowel and had Lowe’s cut it in half for me. The two halves weren’t quite the same size, so I trimmed them to the exact same size at home. For the length of my DIY curtain rods, I measured 8-10 inches beyond each side of the windows to allow the curtains to frame the windows. This accounts for the leather straps, an extra inch of the dowel to stick through past the loop, and space for the curtains to hang without blocking the windows.

2. Sand the Curtain Rod Dowels

The dowels are fairly smooth to begin with, but you’ll still want to sand with fine sandpaper (I used 220 grit) to smooth it out so the curtains can slide smoothly on the wood. I didn’t do this with the curtain rods in our dining room (purely out of laziness), and they did snag on the curtains a bit. However, I don’t plan to move those curtains at all, so they’ve remained that way for now.

In our bedroom, I took the time to sand them and it really doesn’t take much to make them perfectly smooth! I simply wrapped my 220 grit sandpaper around the dowel and did a light sand. It only took a couple minutes!

DIY Leather Curtain Rod Straps

3. Cut the Leather into 1″ or 2″ Straps

The thickness of your leather straps is really a personal preference, but I recommend a minimum of 1 inch and max of 2 inches. Once you decide on a width, measure and cut the leather to size. I left them at the full 10 inch length so there was plenty to wrap around the dowel and mount to the wall.

4. Pre-Drill Holes into the Leather Straps

We pre-drilled the holes into each side of the leather strips so it would be even and clean when we drilled them into the wall. For this step, I measured 1 inch from the end of the leather strip, folded it in half so the ends matched up, then used a small drill-bit to drill through both sides at the same time (this made it easiest to ensure both sides were perfectly aligned). You could also punch holes through the leather if you don’t want to drill through it.

DIY Leather Curtain Rod Straps

5. Mount the Leather Straps

I think we measured about 5 times before mounting the leather straps. This is always the most stressful part for me! When measuring where to mount the straps, you’ll want to make sure you bring them in enough to allow about an inch of the dowel to stick out past it. I am a very visual person, so I always have my husband hold up the curtains so I can see where they should be mounted and measure from there. For both our dining room and master bedroom, we mounted the leather straps 5 inches from the ceiling (this allowed the curtains to puddle just a bit on the floor).

Before mounting the leather straps onto the wall, we pre-assembled them with the screws and caps. If you’re using drywall anchors, screw those in. Then screw the leather strips into the wall and snap the caps closed.

6. Hang Your Curtains!

Once the leather straps are up, all that’s left is to slide the curtains onto the dowel and slip each side of the dowel through the leather straps. Voila! It really is that simple!

This project took under an hour for us to do from start to finish and only cost under $10 each! I LOVE these DIY curtain rods. They add the perfect touch of natural elements and texture, and it’s so fun to know we designed and made them ourselves! This is definitely one of my favorite home DIY projects to date (along with my hallway mural).

DIY Wood Curtain Rods

DIY Curtain Rod Options and Notes:

  • Stain or Paint the Dowels – I opted to leave the natural light wood color for our curtain rod dowels. I paid close attention to the dowels when I bought them, and picked ones that had the graining and details I liked. However, you could drastically change the style of these curtain rods by adding stain or paint!
  • Use Metal Poles Instead of Wood Dowels – If you wanted to go for a more industrial style, you could use metal poles instead of wood. That would give a nice contrast against the leather and create a totally different vibe.
  • Add Finials! – I liked the simple design of the basic dowel and leather strip, however, you could add finials to the ends of the dowels to give these curtain rods a completely different flair. There are so many options out there, the possibilities are truly endless!
  • Change the “Nail Head” Color – I initially wanted metal screw caps, but they didn’t have them when I was at the store, so I bought black screw caps instead. I made it all of a week before I opted to paint them to make it look like a nail head through the leather. I grabbed a gold Sharpie paint pen and colored it on to give my faux nail head a little extra pop. There are different options for screw caps that you could buy, or you can use my favorite DIY tool (paint) and make them any color you want!
  • For Thick Curtains / Curtain Rings / Grommets – You may need to use a spacer to allow your curtains to open and close without rubbing/scraping against the wall. I added blackout curtains with rings in our bedroom and just added a small piece of wood between the leather straps and the wall to act as a spacer. I would add at least 1-2″ to give you enough space between the curtain rod and the wall.

 

Affordable DIY Curtain Rods

73 thoughts on “DIY Wood Curtain Rods with Leather Straps for Under $10”

  1. Pingback: 15 Most Popular DIY Home Decor Ideas

  2. What are the colors you chose for your curtains, white, off white, Natural? I can’t tell by the photos but I love your choices. Thank you for this info, I’m putting them in our camper and absolutely love them. I just need the right curtains. TiA

    1. Hi Deb! The exact curtains in our dining room are no longer in stock, but they are very similar to the Natural curtains here: https://amzn.to/3BhDAmi, I also have the Angora color in our bedroom and really like that color as well! Hope that helps 🙂

  3. I am planning on doing this project next week, but I want to use the curtains I already have.. They’re homemade from drop cloths.. I’m obsessed and I’ve moved them to like 5 different apartments by now BUT they don’t have the curtain rod pocket so they’ve been attached to some very dark, almost black curtain rings. Do you think that’ll look funny? Should I try to find a way to get a pocket sewn?

    1. Hi Wesley! Those curtains sound awesome!! It all depends on the look you’re going for as far as rings or rod pocket, but I think either would look great! If you go with the rings, I’d recommend using a spacer between the leather and the wall (either a washer or block of wood) so there’s a gap between the rod and the wall for the rings to slide. You could also paint the curtain rings and screw caps the same color to make it a bit more cohesive. I’d love to see it when it’s finished!

    2. I meant to add, you could try no-sew tape if you wanted to create a pocket. I know different brands and whatnot will perform differently, so definitely test it out first, but I think that would work too!

  4. Hi there! What type of wood is your dowel? I love its natural color and would love to source something similar. Thank you!

    1. Hi Kaitlyn! The dowel I used is poplar and I didn’t stain or seal it, just sanded and wiped off with a wet rag. I did pick out the one I wanted with some of the detail on it. Hope that helps!

    1. I got the leather off Amazon – the exact one I used is linked. You can also find it at craft stores like Michaels or Hobby Lobby, or a leather belt would work too. Hope that helps!

    2. Hey, I made leather drawer pulls for an ikea shoe cabinet using a $5 leather belt from Value Village instead of buying leather. They look fantastic and very similar to these.

    1. Hi Lindsay! The taupe curtains are from Kohl’s… I’ll have to see if I can find the exact ones as I bought them a few years ago.

    1. Hi Stephen, I haven’t had that issue, even with the curtains that are a bit snug around the thicker rod (not that I move those often). As long as the rod is sanded smooth, the curtains slide easily. However, it could depend on the leather used. The one I used is suede on the back, which might make a difference. If it were an issue, I would add some double-sided tape between the wood and leather to help hold it in place. Hope this helps!

  5. Hey! Thanks for making this article – we plan to use it in our house soon! Such an attractive and inexpensive solution. I bought the screws you linked above with the brass caps, however, I didn’t realize how small they would be since I selected the 10mm (oops!). I know we will need bigger screws – it looks like my other options are 12mm, 16mm, 18mm and 20mm. Which size do you recommend?

    1. Hi Megan, I just measured the black caps that I have, and they are 14mm diameter. You could also look at a ruler to see the different sizes. Either 12mm or 14mm would work, it really depends on preference and how substantial you want it to look. I’m excited to see the end result once you get them up!

  6. Hello! I’ve been trying to do this for quite some time now but can not find the dowels for the same price anywhere. They no longer offer a 1″ x 96″ dowel at Lowe’s. 🙁 I need 2 at 87 inches. The only other option I found was one for almost 30 dollars and at that point, I’m better off getting a curtain rod. Any suggestions?

    1. Hi Lyndsay, sorry you’re having trouble finding a longer dowel! I’m surprised they don’t have the long dowels in the store, I bought one just a few months ago. Hopefully they’ll bring them back! Anyways, I found one online that’s 1.375 inch thick, 96 inch long for $15.98 from Lowe’s. It’s labeled as a closet rod, so maybe they have them in a different section in your local store? You could also try connecting two shorter dowels using a dowel screw (it basically screws in from both sides to create a flush seam) – Those cost about a dollar for a 3-pack. Or else, I’d use metal or plastic conduit and paint it. I know that’s not the same as wood, but they can also look really nice, like this: https://graceinmyspace.com/diy-curtain-rods/. I hope this helps!

    1. I got the black black screw caps at Lowe’s. I have the same ones I used linked as well as metal ones that are what I originally wanted to use, but they didn’t have them in store and I didn’t want to wait, so I just used a metallic Sharpie on the black ones, haha.

  7. Thank you for sharing this!! We just repainted our front room and are planning to do this for the curtains. You are so kind and helpful in all your comments above. Thank you!!

    1. Aww, yay!! Glad you found this helpful. When you get the curtains up, I’d love to see how it all turned out!

  8. I just made this and I’m Inlove with this idea. I love curtains and will always have one wherever we live and this just made my life easier. Oh I love leather too! I wish I would have known this a long time ago. Thank you so much!!!

    1. Oh yay!! I love that! I love curtains too, they add so much coziness to a room. So glad you love the curtain rods/straps!

  9. Caroline Watson-Felt

    This is a great idea, thanks for sharing! Question: What are the paint colors in the photo (dining room?). Thank you!

    1. Thank you! The paint color is Sherwin Williams Agreeable Gray, that’s in both the dining room and bedroom ?

  10. Hi! Wow, what a great idea. So easy and affordable, I may actually have to try this! Window treatments are always a pain to me, especially since we’re currently living in a rented apartment. Anyway, do you have any recommendations on another material to use for the “hooks” instead of leather? Thank you!!!

    1. I think it depends what style you’re going for… Maybe a type of rope? If you have macrame skills, you could probably make something really cute!

  11. This looks amazing, I absolutely love it and want to try it. How much weight can the leather straps hold, say a heavier curtain/drapes

    1. The leather straps can hold a lot, the limiting factor would be how you attach them. I don’t have a way to measure an exact weight, but as long as you use drywall anchors or drill into a stud, I’d be confident they’ll hold any curtains or drapes without issue.

      1. This is awesome. A question, does the dowel move when you try to open and close the curtains? I would think that the leather would grip the dowel and as long as the curtain opening was larger than the dowel you would be good. But there is a diy downer in my midsts..

        1. Hi Rachel, sorry for the late reply! You are correct that the leather does grip the dowel, the leather I used is more of a suede on the back side which grips quite well. If you’re concerned about being able to open and close the curtains daily, you can always use rings (make sure to get the right size!). I did this in our bedroom and just added a spacer behind the leather before attaching to the wall in order to avoid having the rings scrape the wall. For the spacer, I used a piece of dowel about 3/4 inch thick and paint it to match either the wall color or the rings. Hope that helps!

    1. I cut it with scissors, but drew a line on the back with a ruler to make sure it was straight and even. You could also score it if you have a straight edge and razor.

        1. I linked to the exact leather I bought in the post, and I got the 10″x10″ size. It really depends on how much you need! Hope this helps ?

  12. I would love to know where you ordered your curtains from! It has been so hard for me to find a nice cream linen curtain. Thank you so much for the post, what a wonderful idea you had! This is going to solve my horrible Walmart curtain rod problem in my bedroom! ?

  13. What a spectacular project!
    I still wonder how you fixed it to the wall. DO you have picture of the fixture used to attach the leather piece to the dry wall?
    Thanks!
    Marie-Eve

    1. Thank you! I just added a photo of the screw/cap/leather arrangement. I pre-screwed it through both sides of the leather as shown in the photo and we screwed it straight into the wall like that. Then just clip the cap shut!

      1. I LOVE this idea!! I showed my teenage daughter, and we went out today to buy all the needed pieces, except curtains. So excited to see how it turns out!

  14. Love this! I’ve been on the hunt for new (and inexpensive) rods for the bedroom. I love your curtains too. Where did you get them?

  15. VERY COOL IDEA ??♥️??!!Thank YOU For Sharing! I REALLY like TRYING different decorating Ideas AND I Really ENJOY Decorating!!??????♥️G-d♥️Bless?

    1. Thank you! They’re seriously so easy and SO affordable! Curtains are from Target and I just added a link to them in the post. Thanks!

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